Shoeshine shield



la 4, 1949. A. A. CAPUTI 2,458,250

SHOE SHINE SHIELD Filed Aug. 9. 1947 I Ira/an $02 rg Patented Jan. 4, 1949 UN 1 TE D S TAT ES PATENT OFFICE SHOES-HINE- SHIELD Alfred A. Caputi, Buffalo, N. Y.

Application. August 9, 1947, Serial No. 767,701

'1 Claim.

1 This invention relates to a shoe shine shield. The principal object of the-.inventionis to provide a protective shield which can be readily mounted on a shoe while on the wearers foot and which will protect the wearers sock or stocking from eing smeared-with shoe polish or otherwise soiled while the shoe is being polished.

Another object is to provide such a shoeshine shield which effectively prevents the entrance of shoe polish into the interior of the shoe as well as protecting the wearers limb immediately above the'shoe from being soiled.

Another object is to provide such a shoe shine shield which tends to maintain the vpohshing devices used such as polishing rags in efiective working position on the shoe so that the polishing operation can be readily and efficiently .performed.

A further object is to provide such ashoe shine shield which can be readily appliedand removed without requiring removal and replacement of the shoe.

Anoth r object is to provide such a shoe-shine shield which when mounted in its operative position on the shoe does not cause any discomfort nor interfere with the shoe shining operations.

Another object is to provide such-a shoe shine shield whichis simple in construction and inexpensive to manufacture.

Other objects and advantages will be apparent from the following description and drawing wherein:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of one formof shoe shine shield embodying the present invention.

Fig. 2 a similar view thereof and shows the shield in an operative position on a-shoe, theshoe and wearers ankle being illustrated by broken lines.

Fig. 3 is a vertical transverse sectional view thereof taken on line 3-3, Fig-.2.

Fig. i is a top plan view of the shield shown in Fig. 2.

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view similar to Fig. 3 and showing the distortion of the shield when mounting the same between a shoe and the angle of the wearer thereof.

Fig. 6 is a sectional View similar to Fig. 3 and showing a modified form of the invention.

Fig. '7 is a fragmentary sectional view similar to Fig. 3 and showing another modified form of the invention.

The shoe shine shield embodying the present invention is shown as being adapted to be used in connection with the so-called oxfordtype shoe although it is to be understood that shields embodying the invention can be employed with-other types of shoes.

Referring to Figs. 1-5, the'shield is shown as being in the form of a one piece, split, generally Ill) elliptically curved body of relatively thin, flexible material such-as-sheet metal or plastic or other suitable material and including an intermediate sleeve section I'll, an. integral lower flange H and anintegral upper flange F2. Thelower flangel-l is=shown asextending downwardly and outwardly from the lower edge I3 of the intermediate sleeve section I. The lower edge It of this section T0 is cur ved so as to'conform to and follow generally the conventional curvature of the upper edge ll of the upper structure of an oxfordtype-shoe represented generally by the numeral l5, this upper edge I 1 defining the opening through which the-iootis inserted into theshoe. The lower flange 12 is also preferablyof even width-so that the freelower edge of this flange is generally parallel to the lower edgev l3 of. the intermediate sleeve section I'll.

l he intermediate'sleeve section it is shown. as extending upwardly and outwardly from its lower edge i3 and terminating in a substantially horizontal upper edge I6. The 'upper flange i2 is shown as extending laterally and outwardly from this upper edge 16 at a slight upward inclination to the horizontal as best shown-in Fig. 3. This laterally'extending upper 'flange 12 is also shown as being of even -width so that the free upper edge of this flangeissubstantially parallel-t0 the upper edge H3 of thenintermediate sleevesection H1.

The shield is so formed that normally the adjacent edges I 8 ofthe-intermediate sleeve section Hl-are relatively far apart when the shield is not mountedin an; operative position, as shown in Fig. -l.-. However, the-shield is sufficiently flexible and springy that the adjacent edges can be separated farther apantand brought closer together when applying the shield to a shoe.

Reterring to Figs. 2 and 3-, it will be seen that the lower flange -H is adapted to be inserted into the foot opening in the shoe 15 between theankle 1'9 and the shoe. When the lower flange I I of the shield is so inserted the lower edge It of the intermediate sleeve section Ill is adjacent and substantially parallel to the upper edge Moi the shoe. By reason of the flexible and compressed condition of the shield when in operativeposition on' the shoe, it will be seen. that the lower flange l l lays conformably-againstthe inner surfaceof the'shoe adj acent the upper edge M thereof'andexerts an outward pressure thereagainst thereby providing an eiTecti-ve seal between the shieldyarrd' shoe to prevent liquid or .paste shoe polish and the lihefr'om-entering the-shoeat this point.

Inz'this connection; to further .produce aneffective seal between the shield and the shoe the lowerflange .11 is normally at a greater inclination relative to the vertical than the wall of the shoe adjacent the upper edge [4 thereof so that the flexible shield must be distorted from the full any suitable absorbent material such as felt or the like. Similar reference characters have been used to indicate like parts. This strip 2! is shown as cemented to the exteriorsurface of the intermediate sleeve section I immediately above the lower edge I3 thereof although any other suitable mode of attaching the strip may be employed.

The strip 2| is shown as being so located that care need not be taken in applying polish to the exterior surface of the shoe. Also, the upwardly and outwardly inclined wall of the intermediate sleeve section l0 tends to keep the polishing rag from moving off the surface of the shoe and thereby permits the shoe to be shined more quickly and without requiring special care to avoid soiling the sock or stocking of the wearer of the shoe. The upper flange l2 serves as a guard rail to prevent the polishing rag from riding off the intermediate Sleeve section l0 while the shield is in use.

Referring to Fig, 2 it can be seen that to apply the shield to the shoe at most it is merely necessaryto "loosen the shoe lace, insert the lower flange H and again tighten the lace. However, in many instances the shield can be applied without first'loosening the shoe lace. It will also be seen that the shield is positioned on the shoe so that the edges '18 forming the split therein are located adjacent the tongue of the shoe and that adjustment of the shield to the particular shape of the shoe can be accomplished by expanding or "contracting the space between the edges l8. Further, when the shield is mounted on the shoe as shown in Figs. 2 and 3, the flared lower flange H fits against the inside of the upper structure of the shoe and tends to prevent withdrawal of the shield from the shoe and-the flared intermediate sleeve section I0 would have to be itself distorted in order to permit the shield to be inserted deeper into the shoe and hence it will be seen that the shield is effectively held in operative position on the shoe and cannot be casually or accidentally displaced Vertically upwardly or downwardly. However, the shield is preferably of such a flexibility that when the shoe has been shined the shield can be pulled upwardly to remove the lower flange H from the shoe and the shield spread to enlarge the space between the edges 58 for removing the shield from around the angle. I v

' A modified form of shoe shine shield embodying the present invention is shown in Fig. 6. The shield shown in Fig, 6 is similar to that shown in Figs. 1-5 and hence the same reference characters have been used to indicate like parts, the only difference being the provision of a hook shaped flange 20 which is preferably formed integrally with the shield. This hook shaped flange 20 is shown as formed on the exterior of the shield adjacent the lower edge l3 of the intermediate sleeve section I0 and having a downwardly turned lip which extends continuously around the shield and cooperates with the lower flange H to provide a continuous socket or groove to receive the upper edge M of the shote l 5. It will thus be seen that shoe polish and the like will be effectively prevented from entering the shoe.

Another modified form of the invention is shown in Fig. 7 wherein the shield illustrated in Figs. 1-5 is shown as'provided with a strip 2| of when the shield is in its operative position on the shoe the lower edge of this strip 21 abuts against the upper edge Id of the shoe thereby to form a continuous engagement with the upper edge It. In this manner excess shoe polish and the like cannot be left standing on the. upper edge M of the shoe but will be absorbed by the strip 2|.

From the foregoing it will be seen that the present invention provides a shoe shine shield which protects the limb of the wearer immediately above the shoe against being soiled during polishing of the shoe; which effectively prevents shoe polish from entering the shoe; which is simple to apply and remove; and which is simple and inexpensive to manufacture. I

I claim: i

A shoe shine shield comprising a split generally elliptically curved one piece body of thin flexible material of substantially uniform thickness throughout and formed to normally'assume a shape in which the adjacent edges thereof pro.- viding said split are relatively widely spaced apart, said body including a sleeve section flared upwardly and outwardly relative to the vertical and adapted to surround a portion of the limb of the wearer immediately above the shoe, said sleeve section having a lower edge conformably curved to follow the conventional curvature of the upper edge of the upper structure of a shoe defining the foot opening of the shoe, and an. integral flange of substantially uniform width extending downwardly and outwardly from said lower edge of said sleeve section and extending continuously therearound, the inclination of said flange relative to the vertical being normally greater than the inclination of said sleeve section and being normally greater than the inclination of said upper structure of the shoe adjacent said foot opening thereof, the juncture between said sleeve section and flange providing a relatively flat but sharply apexed V-shaped indentation in the exterior of said body, said flange being adapted to be inserted substantially its full width between the shoe and foot of the wearer thereof so that the apex of said V-shaped indentation is adjacent said upper edge of the shoe and with said body contracted to narrow the space between said adjacent, edges thereof and with said flange forced to assume a. greater vertical inclination thus causing said sleeve section to incline farther from the- Vertical whereby said flange is biased outwardly firmly against the inside of said upper structure of the shoe.

ALFRED A. CAPUTI.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the flle of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 844,749 Riely Feb. 19, 1907 1,001,540 Luther Aug. 22, 1911 2,186,348 Shearing Jan, 9, 19. .0 

